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This Weekend: Groundhog Day, take 122
It happens only once a year: The day we place all our hopes for good weather with a groundhog.
Budget TravelTuesday, Jan 27, 2009, 5:00 PMGroundhog Day 2008 in Punxsutawney, Pa. (Courtesy Pennsylvania Tourism)Budget Travel LLC, 2016

It happens only once a year—the day we place all our hopes for good weather with a groundhog. Punxsutawney Phil, the bearer of spring (or six more weeks of dreaded winter, depending on whether or not his shadow appears), makes his 122nd appearance this coming Monday. The most famous rodent in Pennsylvania has been on Oprah, met with President Reagan, and attracted an audience of as many as 30,000 people on Feb. 2. Festivities in Punxsutawney, about 85 miles east of Pittsburgh, kick off on Friday. One highlight is the Punxsutawney Weather Discovery Center, where you can learn where folklore and science meet when predicting the weather. And Phil's trainer will be making the rounds to teach everyone about the lovable groundhog.

On Monday, the doors open at 3 a.m.—Phil is expected to make his prediction around 7:25 a.m.

And no worries about missing that weekend's other, even bigger event: on Sunday, the Super Bowl will be shown live in the community center, to be followed by the Bill Murray movie Groundhog Day.

If you can't be there to celebrate with Phil, there will be live video of the event on visitpa.com.